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Friday, July 31, 2015

Huntress are on the verge of releasing their third studio album Static on September 25th via Napalm Records. The powerful pentad’s first single Flesh premieres today on Revolvermag.com with a stunning lyric video.

Huntress vocalist comments:
“Flesh is catchy and hard rock, it’s lusty and bloody, a blackened-party metal make out song. When my bandmates brought me the killer composition, I wrote the lyrics as my storyline unfolded like bizarre film noir. A female serial killer who would transform into a demonic seamstress, preying upon women. She desires their flesh for fashion. Once again, I’ve collaborated with the immensely talented Vance Kelly to bring my story to life. Our telepathic artistic connection has created a twisted romantic lyric video for a summer of lust. Enjoy!”

The new Huntress album Static will be released on September 25, 2015. The highly-anticipated record was produced by Paul Fig (Grammy nominated engineer, Alice in Chains, Deftones, Trivium, Ghost BC) and Jim Rota (Fireball Ministry, Emmy nominated Executive Producer of the Sonic Highways series, Producer Sound City Movie), Engineered and Mixed by Paul Fig.

Huntress storms the high seas September 28th – October 2nd as part of the Mötorboat Cruise. The band will appear alongside heavyweights Mötorhead, Slayer, and Anthrax just to name a few. Expect high-energy sets from Huntress featuring favorites off the first two albums and new head bangers from Static.

Huntress was spawned from the preternatural union of Jill Janus with underground metal band Professor. The band thrives on thundering drums, heavy riffs, spectral solos and catchy choruses that come from the band’s musical concoction of melodic songwriting, occult science and bong rips. Huntress delivers a modern sonic attack while staying true to the roots of heavy metal, with a penchant for thrash, death and black metal.

Huntress released their buzzworthy debut album Spell Eater in 2012 on Napalm Records. One year later, the critically-acclaimed Starbound Beast became a sophomore success. Lemmy Kilmister penned lyrics for “I Want To Fuck You To Death” which quickly became a radio hit. The powerful pentad is now on the verge of releasing their third studio album titled Static on September 25, 2015. Huntress has ascended rapidly in the metal world, driven by fierce work ethic and a relentless tour schedule. They’ve supported Lamb of God, Killswitch Engage, Testament, Danzig, Arch Enemy, Kreator, Amon Amarth, Dragonforce, 3 Inches of Blood and have played a slew of festivals worldwide including Download Festival, The Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival, Metal Fest Open Airs, Heavy MTL and Tidal Wave as headliner.

After 17 years with Crematory, guitar player Matze decided to leave the band in early 2015, to concentrate on his private life and to explore new musical horizons.

The successors are confirmed now, and it´s quite amazing, because for the first time ever, Crematory will play with two guitarists from now on.

On one hand they found Tosse Basler, who´s in the music-business for over 30 years and played in bands like Poison Asp, Forty Shades, Scapegoat, Avalanche or Evolution, who´s handling the rhythm guitar and the clean vocals. On the other hand, Rolf Munkes, who also has over 30 years of experience in the business, joined the band as their new lead guitarist. Rolf is also operating as a producer in his Empire Studios, were he worked with such acts as Majesty, Tony Martin (Ex Black Sabbath), Neil Murray (Ex Whitesnake & Ex Gary Moore), Don Airey (Deep Purple) or Doogie White (Michael Schenker).

More guitars means more metal! Crematory will hit the Kohlekeller Studio again, in September, to record their new album with producer Kristian Bonifer. And this album will cause some great surprises in Spring 2016, which also marks the band´s 25th anniversary! Crematory will play several festivals in the Summer then!

Challenging fans and the metal community last year to help a fully independent band reach Platinum status by selling one million digital copies, Toronto, ON based metal outfit Exes For Eyes have a new task for fans to create on epic huge crowd hug similar to Devin Townsend's during Wacken 2014 while the band performs at this year Heavy Montreal on the Blabbermouth stage on Sunday, August 9th at 1:30pm EST. To date, Exes For Eyes as sold over 14,000 digital copies (with that number growing everyday) since release their new album 'Tongues Like Figure Eights' on December 9, 2014.

The release date of the Lachrymose album „Carpe Noctum“ on CD is August 28th, 2015. The pre-order phase will start on August 14th, 2015 in the webshop of Pure Steel Records.

A brand new band on Pure Steel Publishing are the Greek Lachrymose. Main protagonist Blackmass might be well known in the black/death-scene as the mastermind of Rotting Flesh. Enhanced by the talented female singer Hel, bassplayer Kerk and Drummer Mancer (also playing in Rotting Flesh), they have just recorded ten dark metal tunes together with producer Chris Fielding (Primordial, Electric Wizard). Some decent doom metal elements powered by sophisticated melodies: on “Carpe Noctum” the Hellenic quartet mix up exciting metal harmonies with high, operatic female vocals.

On this debut every friend of handmade dark music will be satisfied; from Candlemass maniacs to Nightwish lovers.

The album from Nightmare World “In The Fullness Of Time" was officially released on vinyl. The limited vinyl edition consists 300 pieces (black) and Gatefold.
The album is also available as CD and digital download.

An early highlight in Pagan's Mind's career was playing the ProgPower USA festival in 2003, the American edition of what many consider to be the best niche festival in the world. Hard on the heels of the release of Celestial Entrance (their sophomore release), the praise they received in Atlanta was unlike anything the band had ever experienced before.

Pagan's Mind played the festival again in 2007 (also appearing as the house band for the legendary «All Star Jam»), and in 2009 returned for the festival's 10 Year Anniversary under the moniker «Returning Heroes».

On September 11th 2014, another historical performance took place at Center Stage, featuring «Celestial Entrance» in its entirety plus an additional set of «True Norwegian Hard-Hitting In-Your-Face Space Metal», including the instrumental piece «Full Circle». It is this piece which comprises the theme of the show you are about to witness.

And now the band will release this concert on October 16th 2015 as a 2CD/DVD digipak version, Blu-ray/2CD version, 2LP Gatefold version and download through Steamhammer /SPV.

Toronto, Ontario-based death metal horde, Abyss, begins their West Coast Anatomization today, the tour set to invade ten-cities over the next week-and-a-half. Kicking of tonight in Vancouver, British Columbia, the quartet will then bulldoze south down the coastline, storming Olympia, Seattle, Portland, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Bakersfield, San Jose, Oakland and San Francisco, where the tour ends on August 8th.

Following the release of their Heretical Anatomy debut LP through 20 Buck Spin in April, critical acclaim on Abyss's abusive death metal reigned in from around the smoldering globe, praising the band's ability to craft the genre's classic stylings into a modernized delivery without impeding on the legitimacy of the founding source material. North American crust metal tones attribute themselves to a thunderous bed of Scandinavian-inspired death worship in a flawlessly executed slab of primal metallic output. Since the release of Heretical Anatomy, Abyss has performed regionally, including supporting the almighty Bolt Thrower, but has yet to tackle a mass accumulation of human civilizations in support of the record, until now, with the proclamation of West Coast Anatomization.

Recorded and engineered by Chris Hegge at Audiolab, Toronto Joel Grind of Toxic Holocaust adds his touch to the production of Heretical Anatomy, mixing and mastering Abyss's malformed death metal and the horror of its Lovecraftian persona. A record which has devotees of Napalm Death, Exhumed, Repulsion, Impaled, Noisem, Terrorizer, Carcass, Axis Of Advance, and 20 Buck Spin labelmates, Mammoth Grinder and Bone Sickness, circling like vultures, Heretical Anatomy unloads the frenzied blasting of early American and UK death metal and grindcore, before a distinct separation between the two existed.

Abyss' Heretical Anatomy can be streamed in its entirety via Soundcloud here and Bandcamp here.

Orders for the vinyl version of Heretical Anatomy can be placed here and the digital here. All LP orders placed directly through 20 Buck Spin include a download coupon.

Sierra Mountains-dwelling blackened death miscreants, Valdur, in conjunction with the plague-spreaders at Cvlt Nation, today offer up the visual companion to "Blessings Of The Goat." The latest war hymn comes by way of the band's Pathetic Scum opus, unleashed via Bloody Mountain Records late last month.

Ranked at #5 on OC Weekly's Ten Best Metal Albums Of Summer 2015, with the publication commending Valdur's unrepentant, "sonic wall of sheer terror," likening the vocals comprising Pathetic Scum to, "those scenes in horror movies where a possessed protagonist is swarmed by all of the voices in their head simultaneously," the record's seven punishing odes of audio abhorrence are currently reaping commendations from underground hordes in the know. Treble champions the, "primal power," summoned by Valdur's overall sound, further elaborating, "They are not shoegazing anywhere, but there's still a haunting atmosphere in the background... Valdur proves that you can be extremely heavy without having to sacrifice musicality.... Pathetic Scum provides the kick in the face you have been craving." No Clean Singing concurs, "The rhythm section are a couple of merciless bone-grinders, and the cavernous vocals are the utterances of a lurching horror. And the needling riffs are not only pestilential, they're also catchy," while Dead Rhetoric notes, "Valdur are once more successful at merging the landscapes of black and death to create something that is more or less as terrifying as it should be... it's a memorable disc that keeps the anger flowing from beginning to end whilst retaining some sense of melody." The Midlands Rocks applauds a record that's, "pestilent, putrescent and pummeling," adding, "beauty takes on a different meaning on this album. Tempos are dragged, forced, fucked; riffs are ripped, ravaged, rabid; and vocals are vehement, vile and venomous... These tracks are not crafted. They're bashed in and out of shape until they bleed the wrong color. Ruthless, uncompromising, and vile beyond compare, Valdur are the embodiment of exquisite malice." Abysmal Hymns hails an offering that's, "cavernous and roaring," commending an overall, "pit of primal power." Adds Metal Insider poignantly "The core of what Valdur does so well runs along the often fine line between the worlds of black and death metal. There are tracks like album opener, 'Tank Torture,' which seethes old-school death metala esthetics mingled with second wave black metal delivery - from the fiery inferno blasting at the start to various, head-banging tempo changes throughout its wonderful nine minute run that finally culminates in a frost-bitten final two minutes. This has been Valdur's burnt bread and curdled butter for a long while and they have never disappointed in their ability to take the best of both the death and blackmetal worlds and merge them so deftly. Yet on Pathetic Scum they are not only able to expound on the technicality of the delivery, but of the atmospherics that blend along with each note as well."

In commemoration of the release of Pathetic Scum, today Cvlt Naton offers up the noxious images of "Blessings Of the Goat." Offers Valdur in a collective statement, "This song and video represent how our 'freedom and will' to make this music conflicts with how these same creative desires tie us down, like an addiction or an obsession...in the darkest and most enlightening of ways......"

Adds Cvlt Nation, "Hey you over there, are you ready to be decapitated by diseased riffs that have been covered by every sonic virus unknown to man? If you are, then Valdur's new album Pathetic Scum... is just for you because it's a non-stop unholy force of nature."

Check out the cryptic visuals of "Blessings Of the Goat," courtesy of Cvlt Nation, here.

Featuring past and current members of Weverin, Endless Blizzard and Plutocracy, Valdur was forged at the turn of the century in a small mountain town located in the pulsating heart of the Sierra Mountains where the Death Valley desert lands meet the ascending Mt. Whitney and where the unholy collective dwells without interference of fashionable scenes or rulebooks. Pathetic Scum was captured entirely at the band's clandestine Bloody Mountain Bunker, mixed by drummer Matthew and mastered by Dan at Morbid Mastering, Pathetic Scum picks up where the repugnant sounds of 2013's critically-adored At War With left off. Featuring the addition of new guitarist, Vuke, the record seethes with a blizzardy onslaught of warring riffs, bestial blasts, wrath-fueled vocal offensives and an overwhelming atmosphere of pandemonium, trepidation and all-encompassing ruthlessness.

Pathetic Scum is out now digitally and in digipak format via the band's own Bloody Mountain Records here where you'll also find the record streaming in its diseased entirety.

As their thirtieth anniversary creeps ever closer late in 2015, Neurosis will this week embark on their most massive North American tour since before the turn of the millennium, as the sixteen-city expedition kicks off today, Friday, July 31st.

The forceful aural surge of Neurosis will be felt through a deluge of performances which are set to take place in sixteen cities across America and Canada over the next three weeks. The quintet will punish the continent with one of their most crushing live sets to date, beginning on July 31st in Lawrence, Kansas, followed by shows in Minneapolis, Madison, Chicago, Louisville, Detroit, Toronto, Montréal, Boston, New York City, Philadelphia, Richmond, Carrboro, Atlanta and New Orleans, before coming to a smoldering finale in Houston on August 16th, the band playing to cities and states which they have not visited since the 1990s along the way.

Support for Neurosis will include the thunder of labelmates Brothers Of The Sonic Cloth (featuring Tad Doyle of TAD and Hog Molly) for the entire trek, with additional legs of the tour also featuring nomadic doomsday cult, The Body, expansive rock duo, Sumac (members of Baptists, Old Man Gloom, ex-Isis, etc.), doom/rock experimenters Pinkish Black and blues/rock-driven labelmates Iron Tongue. Neurosis will also perform at the immense Montréal Festival where they'll join the likes of Mastodon, Meshuggah, Gorguts and many others on August 7th.

Since the release of their 1987 debut LP, Pain Of Mind, Neurosis has increasingly developed into a more potent and prolific act with each new recording and tour. Through releases on Alchemy, Lookout!, Alternative Tentacles, Relapse, Hydra Head and more -- before forming their own Neurot Recordings which houses all of their recordings since the beginning of the millennium -- the band has become a genre-defining institution of heavy music. The Oakland, California natives have broken ground at every turn, pioneering a sound that influenced heavyweights including Isis, Mastodon and High On Fire and inspiring endless legions of fans with their expansive, mind-altering works, as well as forming their own solo outfits and touring acts outside of Neurosis.

In 2012, Neurosis released Honor Found In Decay, recorded by Steve Albini at Electrical Audio and mastered by John Golden of Golden Mastering, the album showcasing the band taking their esoteric but leveling and hymns to even further diversified areas of exploration. Following the album's hometown release show, they disbanded with the backdrop visuals that had accompanied their live set nearly since inception, empowering their anthems in a drastically more human approach. Since the album's release, Neurosis has been heavily proactive tour-wise, embarking on regional bouts of touring and taking part in high-profile one-off and festival events throughout North America and Europe. And the cycle shall continue through the remainder of 2015 and onward towards their eleventh studio album.

A brand new cover of Attitude Adjustment "Working Class Pride" has been made available by Resurrecturis on their YouTube and Soundcloud channels. Resurrecturis dared a very intense take on an old 80's American hardcore classic that in the hands of the Italian monsters turns into a savage ride with tinges of grindcore and black metal fury.
The song was recorded live at Lullaby Studio during one band rehearsal and was completed with the addition of vocal lines by former Resu-vocalist Ivan Di Marco (now with HC legends Straight Opposition) and bass tracks by Marco Morosini (ex-Eversor, ex-The Miles Apart, now with old school death metallers, Mannaia).

"Since our forthcoming album, "Nazienda", deals with work and office life, I thought "Working Class Pride" by Attitude Adjustment fitted perfectly with what we were working on. It's a pretty old song that not many younger kids are familiar with. But it's a fantastic tune and the lyrics are also great and pretty unusual when it comes to 80's US HC.
We sped up the song a bit and added some contemporary undertones, to make it sound more interesting.
Besides we were very glad to spend some time with two friends from the old days who also happen to be respected personalities of the Italian HC scene." (Carlo Strappa / Resurrecturis)

"Working Class Pride" can be listened on Resurrecturis YouTube and Soundcloud pages and for the moment there are no plans for an official physical release. Resurrecturis also took the time to create a customized Attitude Adjustment-inspired logo which, in true punk fashion, is ironic and meaningful at one time.

After a very long time pagan giants Arkona will be playing a full headlining set of your favorite songs on tour around Europe! The Pagan Rebellion is coming in November-December 2015! The band featuring power frontwoman Masha is prepared to conquer Germany, France, Switzerland, Austria, Netherlands and Belgium.

Arkona comments: “Especially for you, our dear friends, we team up with amazing bands like Metsatöll from Estonia and Svartsot from Denmark! Join the official Facebook events and follow our pages, more news, dates and other information coming soon! See you on the shows!“

Following the release of the universally praised studio album Sacrificium which also marked the impressive debut of charismatic vocalist Dianne van Giersbergen, the brand new EP Fire & Ashes rises like the proverbial phoenix! With full symphonic force this latest record showcases the band at its very, very best!

Today the band celebrates the music video premiere for the track “Voyage of the Fallen"!
Get ready for this voyage here!Xandria will be hitting the road together with Powerwolf for a massive tour later this year. Find all upcoming tour dates listed below:

Moonspell recently extended their worldwide deal with Austrian powerhouse Napalm Records. After the successful release of their eleventh studio album Extinct in March 2015, which hit the charts massively, the Portuguese dark metal pioneers in Moonspell have just announced that they will be collaborating with Napalm Events for Booking!

Moonspell mainman Fernando Ribeiro on the marriage with Napalm Events:
"With Napalm Records we feel at home, and not as in the complacency of a comfort zone, in truth we actually felt compelled to expand our already fruitful collaboration and decided moving our agency and live booking to Napalm Events was the way to go. I am sure they will go to hell and back to take Moonspell to your town, to your festival, and to you, so we have joined this ride gladly!"

Thomas Caser, Napalm Records & Napalm Events comments:
“We are very happy to extend the cooperation with one of the most exciting and hard-working Metal bands at present not only on our label but also on our booking branch Napalm Events! Stay tuned for the first dates of Moonspell!”

Catch Moonspell live, when they will hit the road for the following summer festivals and an extensive European tour in Fall 2015. Then be prepared for many more shows to come with Napalm Events!

In a surprise move before heading down to Bloodstock Festival, the Nordic-loving melodic death metallers in Countless Skies have unveiled a new single from their upcoming album due later this year.

The song, entitled “Solace”, is being premiered on PureGrainAudio, and is already picking up praise within a small space of time. Headbanger Reviews enthused about it, saying "What they’re doing is some of the best, if not the best, melodic death that the UK has yet to whip up, and they are only just getting started.”

Always the vanguard of purist-yet-boundless black metal, W.T.C. Productions is proud to present the debut album of Shrine of Insanabilis, Disciples of the Void, set for international release on September 22nd. Although literally emerging from nothingness earlier this year, Shrine of Insanabilis are no mere acolytes, instead evincing a master's knowledge across their debut album. Never more aptly titled, Disciples of the Void comprises six testimonies to the fiery aspiration for enlightenment through inconceivable nothingness. These testimonies are also manifested into this world by their corresponding sigils. Shrine of Insanabilis vividly portray these visions through a heaving mass of obsidian black metal, forever rising and falling, surging and merging, offering glimpses of glory and valleys of despair in equal measure. Like most W.T.C. Productions, Disciples of the Void is impeccably recorded - bold, full-bodied, even Technicolor - with mixing & mastering done by Patrick Engel at Temple of Disharmony, and finished off with David Glomba (Teitanarts) cover art truly deserving of its malefic contents. Blinding darkness, unbearable silence, and incureable madness, all displayed for everyone to experience: this is a raging beginning on a path through the Void. Cover and tracklisting are as follows:

Ruins is the convulsing new long player from death metal trio, Unbreakable Hatred. Set for release next month via Unique Leader Records, the eight-track bruiser from the Quebec City-based tech terrorists was captured by Chris Donaldson at The Grid Studios (Cryptopsy, Despised Icon, Neuraxis etc.) and is violent, precise and unapologeticly rabid. "The riffs are friggin' neck breakers. I can't imagine my fellow lovers of death metal won't dig this," said MetalSucks upon their initial investigation of the title track and first single. "Are you ready to have your spine ripped out through your throat?," added Yell Magazine, "Because that's exactly how you'll feel after listening to the technical death metal intensity of Unbreakable Hatred."

In anticipation of its impending detonation, and commended for their "technical wizardry meets OSDM rage," today Decibel Magazine vomits forth the visual accompaniment of second kill hymn off Unbreakable Hatred's Ruins with "Dysfunctional System." The slick, black and white clip was filmed by Alex-Deleon Cativo, the band issuing of the track, "The concept of the song is about a murderer who killed his two children and was released a few months later. The band denounces the fact that we have a corrupted justice system."

And don't forget to sample the audio obliteration of "Ruins," still streaming at No Clean Singing here.

Unbreakable Hatred was forged by guitarist Philippe Drouin, his drummer brother Dominic and vocalist/bassist Simon B. Lapointe. Manifesting a mutinous amalgam of old-school death metal brutality, modern technical wizardry and blistering groove, over the course of seven years, one previous full-length and a gaggle of touring, Unbreakable Hatred's relentlessly visceral sound expeditions and DIY drive has reaped the respect and adulation from some of extreme metal's most esteemed figureheads. Suffocation's Terrance Hobbs calls Unbreakable Hatred, "one of Canada's premier death metal acts," adding, "this trio of power lays waste to the listeners ear drums on every level and then some!" "Unbreakable Hatred blew us away each night with their energy and ripping songs," championed Misery Index's Jason Netherton, "it was a total pleasure to have them on our tour... Ferocious!" Cryptopsy's Flo Mounier concurs, "Unbreakable Hatred are definitely one of the new bands out there to be recognized! Once again proving that Quebec musicians are on top of their game!"

Bay Area natives and thrash metal band Hatchet are set to release their highly anticipated third studio album Fear Beyond Lunacy on October 30, 2015 via The End Records/ADA.

This follow-up to 2013's acclaimed Dawn Of The End will debut the new Hatchet lineup behind founding member, vocalist, and lead guitarist, Julz Ramos: Clayton Cagle on guitar, Kody Barba on bass, and Ben Smith on drums. The new members have injected the band with a surge of raw energy, and fans of Hatchet will be overly satisfied with this revived enthusiasm laid into the recordings.

Says Ramos, “We felt ‘The World Beyond’ was a good all around track to introduce fans to the new album. It has a good mixture of both fast and mid-tempo pacing with some cool gang chants in the verse. It isn't the fastest or the most melodic on the album either so we wanted people to get a taste but not give away the whole brewery up front. It only leads to good things from here!"

When discussing the album artwork for Fear Beyond Lunacy Ramos adds, “We're excited to finally be revealing our cover art for our third studio album. The artwork was done by Andrej Bartulovic from All Things Rotten who also did our previous album cover for Dawn Of The End. The artwork depicts what I see us becoming as a modern society. A society of fear engrossed, media addicted slaves. We are constantly hooked on what our media and TVs are feeding us to believe to be true and what we should be afraid of today, tomorrow, next month/year etc.. I feel this is particularly true with Americans. There is always some big conspiracy happening or natural disaster predicted by someone hundreds of years ago that everyone in some form or another seems to live their lives in fear of. It's getting out of hand and that's what this picture represents; someone who is ultimately driven insane by this and where we can all be heading if we are not careful."

Hatchet will showcase the new lineup and preview select tracks from Fear Beyond Lunacy this August supporting Kobra And The Lotus, the female-fronted Canadian traditional metal/hard rock band that recently shared stages opening for KISS and Def Leppard.

The first official video from Locrian's Infinite Dissolution LP, created for the album's opening track, "Arc Of Extinction," is now visible for the first time through an exclusive premiere at NPR.

Leading off the harrowing coalescing of dark ambiance, drone, black metal, post-rock, and power electronics that is Infinite Dissolution, "Arc Of Extinction" builds into shape gradually, slowly morphing from through dissonance to an eventually explosive, monolithic crescendo. Seamlessly melds organic flow into a heavily mechanized delivery, Locrian selected Raymond Salvatore Harmon to create the appropriate video for the track, having enlisted his services on videos for prior albums.

"Raymond Salvatore Harmon has made videos before for us," issues Locrian. "When we did the album The Crystal World he made a 3D video for 'At Night's End' and it really was a strong piece in the series we did for that whole album. Here the use of optics is glitched and interwoven marring the natural scenes and generating hypnotic visions that decay and show us less of our world and more of our internal state which sits perfectly with the themes not only of the track 'Arc Of Extinction' but of the whole album Infinite Dissolution." Adds Harmon, "I met Locrian just before moving to London and ended up doing a 3D red/blue video for their 2010 album, The Crystal World. When Andre and Terence reached out to do a video and I heard the record I knew instantly what I wanted to do visually. The video was made through compositing layers of glitched interactive 3D objects with shot footage in the wild."

NPR offers with the premiere for the "Arc Of Extinction" video, "Locrian always wants to show us something new - or at least rearrange the context of what heavy means, or even what sound means. The trio, together for a decade and now based in Chicago and Baltimore, is at the height of its holistic metallic powers on Infinite Dissolution. It's a record that stretches between the lush prog-rock of Popol Vuh, the industrial noise of Coil and the epic black metal riffing of Darkthrone."

Celebrating their tenth anniversary in 2015, Locrian delivers their most conceptually complex and textured material to date on Infinite Dissolution, the album issuing the band's environmentalist views on mankind's ongoing demise through our own destruction of the planet. Produced by Greg Norman (Pelican, Russian Circles) at Steve Albini-owned/operated Electrical Audio in Chicago, mastered by Brad Boatright (Yob, Author & Punisher, Sleep) at Audiosiege in Portland, and bearing artwork based on an immense physical sculpture installation by David Altmejd, the band's second album for Relapse Records surges with nearly fifty minutes of tortured yet stunning experimental blackened/noise-soaked industrial originality.

Infinite Dissolution is now available through Relapse Records -- the CD and vinyl editions and merch bundles are available here, and digital via BandCamp here and iTunes here.

In Pitchfork's 8.2/10 review of Infinite Dissolution, the write-up issues, "Locrian's evolution has hinged less on a refinement of their style and more on an expansion of it, so that new influences and impulses operate inside of their general roar. This spirit is obvious from the start of Infinite Dissolution, which exposes facets and folds of Locrian that never before seemed to exist." Vice Magazine's music portal, Noisey, states of the album, "With Infinite Dissolution, it seems that Locrian has turned the 'shit,' or rather their frustrations and anxieties about the world, into gold. The record's moods and textures are unequivocally varied, its nine songs carefully paced and arranged for maximum effect. One minute's unrelenting harshness is the sonic equivalent of having your face scraped across concrete. In the next, the wounds are melted away in atmospheric bliss. Through it all, layers upon layers of sound and field recordings make for even more heightened dimension." In a 9.5/10 review, Heathen Harvest praises the record: "Like its predecessor, Infinite Dissolution is a further development of Locrian's sound and represents a sense of them coming into their own as a band that writes songs rather than just making sounds. It finds them consistently transitioning from their more abstract drone days into a more song-oriented framework, without losing their experimental inclinations. The way that they beautifully weave memorable melodies into passages of dissonant and experimental soundscapes makes for an album that has the complex, captivating depth of an avant-garde record, but with brilliant guitar and drum passages to ground it squarely in the realm of conventional music. One of the greatest albums of 2015, no question." Steel For Brains states, "...the experimental sound alchemy of Locrian is at times some of the band's most confrontational work to date. Despite this, the album's volatility is derived from the same sort of disquiet the band has threaded throughout their ten-year existence. Themes of dissolution, decay, and entropy set against a background equally measured in the duality of abrasive machinery and ethereal atmospherics." Cvlt Nation also reviewed the album with glowing accolades, including, "Post rock, shoegazey drones and dark ambient soundscapes return from their previous works, but the guitar performances across this album are somehow at the same time more rhythmic and accessible than on previous releases, yet more experimental. Warm moog synth creates a far more organic noise than many of their contemporaries, and droning feedback produces a base that surprisingly accessible guitar riffs dance over, further punctuated by a more prominent, focused vocal performance than ever before..."

The fourth installment of the annual Southwest Terror Fest is now less than three months from once again overthrowing Tucson, Arizona with four days of live mayhem from an incredible array of artists from across the gamut of the underground scene.

Running from October 15th through 18th, the headlining acts for Southwest Terror Fest VOL. 4 will be Sleep, Acid King, Dropdead, Bongripper, and a collaborative set from Thou & The Body, with additional highlights from the gathering including sets from Xibalba, Landmine Marathon, Brothers Of The Sonic Cloth, Graves At Sea, Cult Leader, Call Of The Void, Demon Lung, Immortal Bird, In The Company Of Serpents, Abstracter, Gale, and many others, with impromptu sets throughout the weekend once again from soloist, Amigo The Devil.

Southwest Terror Fest Vol. 4 will consume three different sized venues to house the activities at this year's four-day-long event -- The Rialto Theatre, Club Congress and 191 Toole. The festivities will begin on Thursday, October 15th with a nighttime kickoff show, followed by both matinee and late club shows on Friday the 16th, and the main events on Saturday the 17th and Sunday the 18th, marking the fourth successive year since the inception of SWTF.

While VIP tickets for the full fest have sold out, individual tickets for all Southwest Terror Fest Vol. 4 shows are available here.

Southwest Terror Fest was founded in 2012 by members of Tucson-based underground acts Godhunter, Inoculara, Diseased Reason and Great American Tragedy, in conjunction with local venues, vendors and businesses, in order to bring a full-bore event to underground music fans. Each year the event expands into new directions and brings a massive variety of internationally-known headliners together with incredible acts from across the Southwest and beyond.

Belgian death metal horde, Serial Butcher - which features current and formers members of Aborted, Emeth, Moker, Ectopia and more -- will spew forth their first full-length offering in five years this Fall via Unique Leader Records. Titled Brute Force Lobotomy, the follow-up to 2010's lauded A Crash Course In Cranium Crushing offering was recorded and mixed by Lander Cluyse (Hessian, Oathbreaker, Amenra etc.) at Hearse Studio, mastered by Serial Butcher guitarist Kenneth Keysers at Badass Audio Mastering and boasts ten brilliantly-formulated and expertly-executed death metal mantras. For twenty-two venomous minutes, Serial Butcher punches you in the throat rapidly and repeatedly with a brutal assortment of blistering leads, bestial hooks, blasts, grooves and guttural grotesqueries, its raw, crisp production only heightening its devious aural annihilation. If you consider yourself a sincere fan of boundless brutal death metal, you owe it to yourself to investigate this ingenious monstrosity.

Comments the band in a collective statement, "Sometimes there's need for careful thought... for tranquil conversation... for peaceful mediation. And sometimes... you just want to stab someone in the eye with a blunt, rusty knife. Until (s)he's dead. And then you stab some more... Just to be sure.... It's the very definition of the latest Serial Butcher recording, Brute Force Lobotomy."

Serial Butcher was forged in 1995 by drummer Nico Veroeven (Emeth, ex-Apocryph, ex-Leptotrichia) and guitarist Hendrik Dobbelaere who were later joined by bassist Bob D'Hondt and vocalist Steven De Craeker (Putrid Inbred). A self-titled demo tape was unleashed upon an unsuspecting underground two years later. Likened to a more brutal version of Cannibal Corpse, the band performed regularly throughout the country, opening for international acts such as Loudblast, Natron, Suffocation and Aborted. Two more demos would surface by 2001 and - limited to just a few hundred copies - sold out quickly. D'Hondt and Dobbelaere eventually fled the band and the remaining members were joined by guitarist Nicolas Malfeyt (Leng Tche), leaving them bass-less for a time. Serial Butcher joined the Deepsend Records roster for the release of their Kris Belaen (Aborted, In-Quest etc.)-recorded Genocide Landscape EP (2003) before undergoing another bout of lineup shifts which saw the addition of bassist Koen Van Goethem (ex-Bloodfart), second vocalist Kurt Termonia (ex-Ectopia) and guitarist Gijs Cielen (ex-Apocryph) replacing Malfeyt who'd also left the group. Both De Craeker and Cielen would exit the lineup in 2007 paving the way for guitarist Kenneth Keysers (ex-Acephalous, Moker, Steengruis) who would eventually join the ranks, marking their first stable lineup in years. By 2008, Serial Butcher proved more punishing sonically than ever before as evinced by their A Crash Course In Cranium Crushing full-length. Tracked at the famed Berno Studio in Sweden with producer Henrik Larsson (The Haunted, Amon Amarth, Vomitory etc.), the record's terminally crushing assaults earned the interest of Unique Leader Records, who released the record in 2010. The band continued to slay stages opening for the likes of such extreme metal powerhouses as Malevolent Creation, Obituary, Vader, Exhumed, Brutal Truth, Leng Tche, Ulcerate and more.

In 2013, Serial Butcher was selected to take part of a worldwide art project called A Box-Sized Die created by Portuguese artist, Joao Onofre. The band was asked to perform in a fully sound and oxygen proof box measuring 5 feet and 10.87 inches at all sides and managed to do so for nearly twenty-five minutes. The audience could not see or hear the band but only capture vibrations coming of the cube. The event took place at the Center For Contemporary Art in Aalst, Belgium, was broadcast on regional TV and reaped the band commercial airplay on Studio Brussel with a live interview.

Enter Brute Force Lobotomy. The band's epitome of pure sonic sickness. The record comes bedecked in the twisted renderings of renowned artist, Tony Koehl and sees the addition of Koen Verstraete (ex-Leptotrichia, ex-Aborted), replacing longtime bassist Van Goethem, who departed the band just before the record's completion.

Brute Force Lobotomy will be released on CD and digital formats on September 18th, 2015 via Unique Leader Records. Teaser tracks and preorder info to be announced in the days to come.

French black/death metal veterans, Temple Of Baal, have set "Mysterium" as the title of their next full-length album, due on October 2nd via Agonia Records, and "Divine Scythe" as the first single to be released. The song, which features guest vocals by Georges Balafas (Drowning, Eibon, Decline Of The I) is available for listening below.

In their over 15 years-long career, marked by four full-lengths and numerous split releases, the highly respected French coven Temple Of Baal have evolved from a primitive black/thrash outfit into a monstrous black/death Metal entity of epic dimensions. "Verses Of Fire", the last album (2013), was acclaimed worldwide as a milestone in the band's career, allowing Temple Of Baal to perform at notable festivals such as Hellfest, Motocultor, Summer Breeze, Kings Of Black Metal and Speyer Grey Mass. The formation also played selected shows in France, Finland, Germany, Switzerland and Austria, sharing the stage with the likes of Watain, Antaeus etc.

As the album's title suggests, "Mysterium" dwells on the topics of spirituality and religiosity. "From the opener, Lord Of Knowledge And Death, to the closing number, All In Your Name, every inch of this record drips with it" - comments the band. "Mysterium can be seen a collection of meditations and prayers over the mysteries of Faith, directed towards the gods of the left hand path".

Musically, Temple Of Baal's black metal roots are back in full force, allowing the atmospheres to develop through songs of epic proportions, mostly clocking around 8 or 9 minutes each. "Mysterium" covers a wide musical specter, from slower ritualistic parts, to furious blasts and thrashy riffs or the surprisingly melodic choirs of "Magna Gloria Tua" and "Hosanna", each song taking the listener into a spiritual journey, evolving through various climates, keeping the listener's mind awake. "I never got that much into monotonous, uniform albums" - says band's leader Amduscias. "I like music to take my mind from one point to another. Even if I have a strict view of what Temple Of Baal should be, stagnation is not something I'm very fond of."

The recording of "Mysterium" took place in Hybreed Studios with long-time sound engineer, Andrew Guillotin (Glorior Belli, Mourning Dawn), who managed to capture the band's trademark massive sounding, magnifying it through a warm and organic production. Cover artwork and layout have been prepared by David Fitt (Aosoth, Secrets of the Moon, Svart Crown) and Maria Yakhnenko.

Paying tribute to their old school roots, Temple Of Baal covers Bathory for the second time, with the song "The Golden Walls Of Heaven" closing the vinyl edition as a bonus track.